decosnapper

Forum username: decosnapper
Real name: Simon
Posts: 404
Active years: 2009–2023
Primary forums: Copyright Issues/Non-Payment/Fraud/Theft, Photography Gear and Technique, The Galley: General Chat
Specialization: UK copyright law, photographers’ rights, orphan works legislation

Community Role

Decosnapper (Simon) was Wetpixel’s most prominent advocate for photographers’ copyright and intellectual property rights, particularly regarding UK legislation. Based in the United Kingdom, Simon brought a passionate and well-informed voice to debates about orphan works legislation, image licensing, and the erosion of photographers’ rights in the digital age. He was active for over fourteen years, one of the longest-tenured members focused on the legal and business side of underwater photography.

Simon’s contributions were concentrated in the Copyright Issues forum, where he served as a watchdog and alarm-raiser on legislative threats to photographers. His posts demonstrated deep knowledge of UK and EU copyright law, combined with a pragmatic understanding of how legislation would affect working photographers.

Notable Contributions

• UK Orphan Works bill campaign: Simon’s most impactful contribution was his December 2009 thread alerting the Wetpixel community to the UK Digital Economy Bill’s provisions on orphan works and extended collective licensing. His detailed analysis of the bill’s key dangers — including the ability to use images whose creator “cannot be identified” without penalty, government-set licensing fees, and the power to amend copyright law without scrutiny — sparked a 62-reply discussion that became one of the most significant copyright threads on Wetpixel. Simon provided practical advice to UK voters on contacting their MPs and urged all photographers worldwide to embed copyright metadata in their images. The thread continued with his follow-up posts through 2013 as the legislation progressed (^[1]).

• “An open apology” update: In April 2013, Simon posted a sardonic follow-up titled “An open apology” when the UK government proceeded with orphan works and extended collective licensing despite lobbying efforts. The thread drew responses from Paul Kay and other UK-based members who shared concerns about the legislation’s impact on foreign creators (^[2]).

• Free image usage guidelines: Simon shared a practical and humorous guide on “When to give your images away for free” — a flowchart-style resource that helped photographers evaluate requests for unpaid image use. The thread resonated with both amateur and professional members (^[3]).

• Practical gear discussions: Beyond copyright advocacy, Simon participated in gear discussions including a thread on whether Gorillapod tripods sink (relevant for underwater videography setups) and Lightroom catalog management on networked drives.

Key Positions

Simon argued consistently that:

• There is no such thing as a “genuinely orphaned work” — someone always owns the rights, and the term is too broadly defined
• Large corporations (Google and similar content aggregators) would be the primary beneficiaries of orphan works legislation, not the public or creators
• Photographers bear responsibility for embedding metadata and copyright notices to prevent their work from being separated from attribution
• Government administration of licensing fees would inevitably result in poor compensation for creators

Activity Profile

• First post: September 2009
• Peak years: 2010–2014
• Threads started: 23
• Last appearance: July 2023
• Forum focus: Predominantly copyright issues and photographers’ rights, with secondary activity in gear and general discussion forums